Do your Site Right!

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Here are the best 20 tips I have seen:

Article by Nick Nichols, 
Executive Director of The Business Success Institute.
Please refer to Nick at: mailto:nick@successplace.com for more info.
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1. Undifferentiated Products or Services 

A surprising number of sites offer products and services
with no "online ordering advantage." This is especially 
true of health-related items, business services, book and
information sellers and MLM reps. You *must* give your
visitors a *compelling reason* to buy from you online. 

2. Large Useless Graphics 

"Websters" have the need for speed. Yet far too many
home pages open with Large Useless Graphics (LUGs) that 
load slowly and make no contribution to the effectiveness 
of the page. In most cases, your *home page* should be 
40K or less in file size -- *including graphics*. Spinning 
globes, stock photos, massive company logos, etc., take up 
precious real estate that could be better utilized for 
benefit-related information. 

3. "Welcome to My Site" 

Phrases like this, repetition of your company name and
other self-serving statements only cloud your message.
Your home page and virtually every other page on your 
site should begin with a compelling, stimulating,
interest-generating, *headline* or opening equivalent that
tells your viewers "what's in it for me if I read this page." 

4. Blinkers, Spinners, Scrolling Marquees, Counters, etc. 

There was a time (that lasted about fifteen minutes) when
these things were new and unusual. Now they are passé --
and in many cases, distracting and annoying. Counters
especially have lost their usefulness. They are self-serving
devices that have no purpose because most visitors really
don't care how many alleged hits your site has gotten. 

5. External Links -- Especially on Your Home Page. 

This is equivalent to having an office or storefront that 
leads to a choice of doors that go to other businesses. 
When a potential customer arrives, why give that person an
immediate opportunity to leave and never return? If you
*must* link externally, do it on a page that's buried deep 
in your site that can only be accessed after viewing the
important pages on *your* site. 

6. Just About Any Award Logo/Banner 

Most Web "awards" are dubious at best, and meaningless
to most of your visitors. Awards are self-serving
space-wasters that should be replaced with visitor-focused
information that gives people a reason to stay at your site,
not leave it to investigate the "award" sponsor. 

7. Typographical or Grammatical Errors 

Seems obvious, yet many, many Web pages contain common 
spelling and grammatical errors. Your copy is a reflection on 
your professionalism (or lack of it), your attention to detail 
(or lack of it) and your commitment to excellence (or lack of 
it.) Why give visitors *any* reason to doubt you? Use spelling 
and grammar checkers to make sure your copy is first-rate. 

8. Over Use of "We, Our, Us, My, Me, Mine" and Your Company Name 

These are self-serving words that turn off readers. Instead,
you should use words like "you" and "your." Before you post 
copy to your site, run a "find and replace" utility and check 
for the number of "you-words" against the number of "us-words." 
The ratio should be 4-5 "you-words" for every "us-word." 

9. "Name, Rank and Serial Number" Information 

It's *amazing* how many home pages begin, "The Acme Widget 
Company is a family-run business located in Cornfield County, 
Nebraska..." *Who cares?* What does this have to do with the 
benefits of your products or services? If you *must* include 
boring vital statistics like these, put them on an "About Us" 
page and give some reasons *why* these things are important 
to readers. 

10. Frames 

Many older browsers don't support frames. Many search engines 
don't index them properly. Many frames require scrolling to 
read the text and activate links. Frame scrolling bars take 
up precious real estate. Frames don't bookmark properly. 

11. "Under Construction" Signs/Notices 

What good does a page that isn't finished do for your visitors? 
It just wastes their time and could possibly frustrate or annoy 
them. Every page on your site should have a purpose or reason 
why it's there. Every page should also have a "call to action" - 
what you want the visitor to *do* after reading the information. 

12. Broken Links 

This should be obvious, but broken links are all too frequent. 
Broken links are annoying, frustrating and unprofessional. Why 
make your visitors mad? 

13. Missing Graphics 

This should also be obvious, but missing graphics are all over 
the Web -- even on "professional" sites whose principals should 
know better. 

14. Incomplete Contact Information 

It's amazing how many companies try to remain anonymous and 
then expect people to do business with them. To maximize your 
credibility and believability, you should include complete 
contact information on *every* page. Use a physical street 
address, not a P.O. Box. Provide a "live" phone number, not 
a voice mailbox. List your fax number, and toll-free ordering 
number if you have one. And, of course, list an email hotlink 
to *you*, not your webmaster. 

15. Home Page That "Scrolls Into Oblivion" 

Despite the universal quest for information by Websters, most 
of them will *not* read long home pages that "scroll into 
oblivion." You should break up your home page to a *maximum* 
of three complete vertical page scrolls on a 14" monitor. Give 
visitors links and benefit-related teasers that lead to separate 
pages. 

16. Cookie Nags That Appear More Than Once 

Many people believe cookies are an invasion of their privacy. 
If you must use cookies, don't "nag" your visitors more than 
once *per visit* to allow you to set a cookie. 

17. Free Offers That Aren't Immediately Fulfilled 

You *should* make some kind of free offer on your site that will 
allow you to capture visitor names and email addresses. But you 
should *only* do this if you can immediately fulfill your offer. 
Many sites offer free consultations or information, then fail 
to deliver. This can permanently damage your credibility. 

18. Non-Secure or Confusing Ordering Procedures 

Many sites have non-secure or confusing ordering procedures. 
Better to *not* request credit card info, etc., if you can't 
do it securely. Offer a mail-in, call-in or fax-in alternative. 
If you have more that 2-3 items for sale, invest in a shopping 
cart ordering system. Make it *easy* for customers to buy from 
you. 

19. Plug-Ins/JavaScript Pop-Up Windows 

Most people will *not* take the time to load plug-ins to view
or do something at your site. They'll just click away. JavaScript 
pop-up windows can be annoying. Why make it difficult for 
visitors to see what you offer? 

20. Plagiarized Material 

This should be obvious, but many people take copyrighted 
material from other sites and pretend it's theirs. Doing 
this will eventually bite you and could lead to serious legal 
problems. The good news is, most people are flattered to let 
you use their material, if you give them proper attribution.

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Please refer to Nick at: mailto:nick@successplace.com for more info.
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